Drop Cart with Cashbox Data Reader Array and Autonomous Drop Cart Processing System for Automated Casino Accounting

ABSTRACT

An autonomous drop cart processing system is described. The system is configured to communicably couple with a drop cart that includes an array of cashbox data readers configured to interface with cashbox data transmitters associated with cashboxes inserted into compartments of the drop cart. As a result of this construction, the autonomous drop cart processing system can remove contents of each cashbox on the drop cart without needing to remove the cashbox from the drop cart in order to read the data from the cashbox data transmitter.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/810,307, filed Mar. 5, 2020, which is a nonprovisional of and claimsthe benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/846,062, filed May 10, 2019, the contents of whichare incorporated herein by reference as if fully disclosed herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments described herein relate to automated casino accountingsystems and, in particular, to automated systems to facilitatecollection, accounting, sorting, and bundling of currency notes andother documents inserted by players into electronic gaming machines in acasino gaming environment.

BACKGROUND

A casino is typically required by one or more regulatory bodies tomaintain accurate records of all transactions (e.g., ticket in/ticketout transactions, player card transactions, cash or document deposits,and so on) initiated by or through an electronic gaming machinecontrolled by the casino. Conventionally, such records are communicatedfrom an electronic gaming machine to a local or remote server approvedby the regulatory body.

At a later time, physical documents (e.g., cash, tickets, and so on)received by the electronic gaming machine are manually collected by acasino employee. Specifically, the casino employee retrieves a locked“cashbox” from the electronic gaming machine and transports the lockedcashbox on a locked cart to a secured location in the casino (a“counting room”). Space within a counting room is typically compact andcan become quickly crowded with casino employees, drop carts awaitingcounting, and accounting equipment.

Once in the counting room, another casino employee removes and unlocksthe locked cashbox from the locked cart and extracts a stack ofdocuments contained therein. Thereafter, the stack is counted and sortedto verify that all cash transactions reported by the electronic gamingmachine exactly match electronic records. Thereafter, the emptiedcashbox is relocked and placed on a locked cart to be reinserted into anelectronic gaming machine by a casino employee.

However, the process of regularly collecting cashboxes, placingcashboxes onto a locked cart, transporting a full cart to a countingroom, unlocking cashboxes, retrieving document stacks from unlockedcashboxes, processing (e.g., sorting, counting, and/or bundling) theretrieved document stacks, relocking empty cashboxes, and redistributingand reinserting locked empty cashboxes into electronic gaming machinesis exceptionally time consuming and subject to human error.

In addition, a conventional casino counting room is typically large intotal area and requires many full-time employees to receive and processdrop carts in a time-efficient manner. As a result, conventional casinocounting rooms require casino space that might otherwise be usable bythe casino for other purposes, such as additional electronic gamingmachines or for guest services (e.g., restaurants, shops, and the like).In addition, the cost associated with the employees required to operatea conventional casino counting room is often a high.

SUMMARY

Embodiments described herein are directed to an autonomous drop cartprocessing system. The system is configured to communicably couple witha drop cart that defines an array of compartments, each of which isconfigured to receive a cashbox. Each compartment of the drop cartincludes a dedicated cashbox data reader configured to interface with acashbox data transmitter. As a result of this construction, anautonomous drop cart processing system can remove contents of eachcashbox on the drop cart by manipulating the position of one or moreautomation mechanisms without needing to remove the cashbox from thedrop cart in order to read the data from the cashbox data transmitter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to representative embodiments illustrated inthe accompanying figures. It should be understood that the followingdescriptions are not intended to limit this disclosure to one includedembodiment. To the contrary, the disclosure provided herein is intendedto cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be includedwithin the spirit and scope of the described embodiments, and as definedby the appended claims.

FIG. 1 depicts a drop cart for use in a casino gaming environment, suchas described herein.

FIG. 2A depicts a top plan view of a drop cart including an integratedcashbox reader array, received in a compact counting room such asdescribed herein.

FIG. 2B depicts a front plan view of the drop cart and compact countingroom of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3 depicts a simplified system diagram of a drop cart including anintegrated cashbox reader array, such as described herein.

FIG. 4 depicts a simplified system diagram of an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, such as described herein.

FIG. 5 depicts example operations of a method of operating a drop cart,such as described herein.

FIG. 6 depicts example operations of a method of operating an autonomousdrop cart processing system, such as described herein.

FIG. 7 depicts example operations of a method of operating an autonomousdrop cart processing system, such as described herein.

The use of the same or similar reference numerals in different figuresindicates similar, related, or identical items.

Additionally, it should be understood that the proportions anddimensions (either relative or absolute) of the various features andelements (and collections and groupings thereof) and the boundaries,separations, and positional relationships presented therebetween, areprovided in the accompanying figures merely to facilitate anunderstanding of the various embodiments described herein and,accordingly, may not necessarily be presented or illustrated to scale,and are not intended to indicate any preference or requirement for anillustrated embodiment to the exclusion of embodiments described withreference thereto.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments described herein reference a system including (1) a cashboxdrop cart configured for batch and/or parallel cashbox processing (a“drop cart”) and (2) an autonomous drop cart processing system—typicallyhoused in a casino counting room—for reading data from, and emptying,one or more cashboxes collected from one or more electronic gamingmachines and transported to a casino counting room on the drop cart in acasino gaming environment.

For simplicity of description, many embodiments herein reference a“casino” as an example gaming industry entity in control of a casinogaming environment, although it is appreciated that this is merely oneexample. Similarly, for simplicity of description, the phrase“electronic gaming machine” as used herein is generally understood torefer to a stationary slot machine within a casino, however, it may beunderstood that this is merely one example of an electronic gamingmachine or gaming service. In other words, in some embodiments, othergaming industry entities and/or other stationary, portable, and/ordigital (e.g., software-based) electronic gaming machines and/orservices may be suitable for use with the various embodiments describedherein and equivalents thereof.

For embodiments described herein, a drop cart and an autonomous dropcart processing system are communicably coupled and configured to,without limitation: extract data from each cashbox disposed on the dropcart; unlock each cashbox disposed on the drop cart; open a door of eachcashbox disposed on the drop cart; retrieve document stacks (e.g.,stack(s) of documents, casino vouchers, and the like); jog and/orotherwise sort or organize the retrieved document stacks; close the doorof each cashbox disposed on the drop cart; relock each cashbox disposedon the drop cart; and send a signal to each locked cashbox and/or acasino system (e.g., accounting system) that a relocked cashbox on thedrop cart is empty and ready for reinstallation in an electronic gamingmachine.

As a result of the architectures described herein, a batch of cashboxesdisposed on a drop cart (such as described herein) can be processed as agroup or in a batch by an autonomous drop cart processing system withoutrequiring the time-consuming traditional operations of removingcashboxes from a conventional drop cart, positioning removed cashboxesonto a cashbox data reading dock, emptying said cashboxes, repositioningempty cashboxes onto another drop cart, and so on. In a simplernon-limiting phrasing, the embodiments described herein enable the rapidand efficient processing of a set, group, or batch of cashboxes whilethose cashboxes remain on a drop cart, such as described herein.

In this manner, the various systems and methods described hereinsubstantially automate the operations of processing cash and otherdocuments received and stored in cashboxes collected from one or moreelectronic gaming machines or gaming services (e.g., slot machines,table games, and so on) associated with a casino gaming environment. Asa result, the costs and complexities associated with operating atraditional casino counting room—including employment of a full-timestaff of multiple highly-trained employees—can be reduced. Further,physical space in a casino reserved for a conventional counting room canbe reclaimed for other purposes (e.g., additional floor space, guestservices space, and the like), because an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, such as described herein, requires substantially lessphysical space than a conventional counting room. Further still, anautonomous drop cart processing system and drop cart, such as describedherein, can be less expensive to operate continuously and can besubstantially faster than a traditional team of casino counting roomemployees. As a result, a casino implementing the systems describedherein can reclaim counting room space, reduce operational costs,decrease a mean time for processing cashboxes, reduce a number ofauxiliary cashboxes required by the casino to reinstall in electronicgaming machines while other cashboxes are being processed, reassignhighly skilled employees to other responsibilities, reduce counting roomerror rates (thereby potentially reducing insurance rates and/orpremiums), reduce downtime of electronic gaming machines (therebyincreasing average gameplay time and casino revenues), and so on.Further, an autonomous drop cart processing system, such as describedherein, can dramatically decrease the risk of fraud or theft by casinoemployees or contractors tasked with money handling.

A drop cart—such as described herein—is a movable storage rack, trolley,or other movable compartment, cage, cabinet, or locker used by a casinoemployee to store and securely transport a number of cashboxes collectedfrom a number of electronic gaming machines, to a counting room or othersecure location of a casino. The drop cart may include a frame thattypically takes the shape of a rectangular prism, one or more sides ofwhich define a number of compartments or alignment regions into whichindividual cashboxes can be inserted. The drop cart is movable by wheelsor casters that support the frame, which may be powered or unpowered.Other drop cart frames can be implemented with different shapes,including cylindrical or drum shapes, cubic shapes, and the like.

The compartments defined, at least in part, by the frame of the dropcart may be enclosed, lockable, open, or defined by guide walls or otheralignment features to encourage alignment of cashboxes into predefinedpositions when inserted into the drop cart. The compartments, in manyexamples, can include retaining and release features that substantiallysecure a cashbox once inserted. Example retaining and release featuresinclude, but are not limited to: push-push mechanisms; latch mechanisms;detent mechanisms; and so on.

In many examples, although not required, the compartments of a drop cartsuch as described herein are arranged in rows, each defining a number ofdiscrete compartments into each of which a respective one cashbox can beinserted. However, these foregoing examples are not exhaustive and otherdrop carts can organize compartments in a different manner (e.g., bycolumns, in a particular pattern, in a magazine or other feeding orqueuing device, and so on).

In many embodiments, a drop cart, such as described herein, includes anarray of cashbox data readers, each of which is positioned relative to asingle compartment of the drop cart. For embodiments described herein,each cashbox data reader is configured to retrieve information stored ina memory of a respective cashbox. As a result of this construction,information from each cashbox disposed on a drop cart, such as describedherein, can be read substantially simultaneously and/or in batches. Inmany cases, the cashbox data reader(s) of a drop cart, such as describedherein, can begin reading information from a cashbox immediately and/orshortly after that cashbox is inserted into a compartment of the dropcart. In other cases, the cashbox data reader(s) of a drop cart, such asdescribed herein, can begin reading information from cashboxes as thedrop cart is transported within the casino.

The operation(s) associated with reading information and/or data fromeach cashbox inserted into compartments of a drop cart—such as describedherein—can be performed autonomously by a processor or other circuitryof the drop cart or, in certain embodiments, can be performed orotherwise triggered by a casino employee interacting with a human inputdevice interface provided by, or otherwise associated with, the dropcart. As a result of these constructions, the system can record andassociate a timestamp (and/or other data) with each cashbox on eachcashbox cart at each moment the cashbox is handled, either automaticallyor manually, thereby automatically establishing a chain of custody ofeach cashbox (and, correspondingly, each banknote and each document ineach cashbox) from an electronic gaming machine to a counting room.

For example, the drop cart can include one or more buttons or userinterface components (e.g., touch screens, dials, button pads, numberpads, keyboards, or other inputs) the casino employee can interact withand provide input to in order to begin the operation(s) of reading oneor more cashboxes disposed on the drop cart.

In other examples, the casino employee can operate a portable electronicdevice (e.g., cellular phone, tablet device, smart watch, handheldscanner or data input device, and so on) separate from the drop cartthat is communicably coupled to the drop cart. In other words, theportable electronic device can send one or more signals to the dropcart—via a wireless or wired connection—that trigger the drop cart tooperate one or more cashbox data readers to obtain data or informationfrom one or more cashboxes inserted into the drop cart.

These foregoing examples are not exhaustive. To the contrary, it isunderstood that any number of suitable communication techniques andcircuit topologies can be selected for a particular implementation ofthe embodiments described herein to perform the operation(s) ofobtaining information from cashboxes when, or otherwise while, thosecashboxes are disposed on a drop cart.

Similarly, it is understood that any suitable information can becommunicated between cashboxes and a cashbox data reader, such asdescribed herein. The information obtained from a cashbox typicallycorresponds to accounting information related to documents within thecashbox and/or identifying information related to an electronic gamingmachine from which the cashbox was retrieved, and so on, although thisis not required. Other information includes, but is not limited to: aunique identifier associated with the cashbox; a unique identifier oraddress associated with the electronic gaming machine from which thecashbox was retrieved; a listing of all documents contained in thecashbox; a set of images of each document in the cashbox; a count ofdocuments in the cashbox; a sum total of currency notes within thecashbox; and so on. It may be appreciated that these examples are notexhaustive and that any suitable information can be communicated betweena cashbox and a cashbox data reader, such as described herein.

For simplicity of description and illustration, the term “cashbox datatransmitter” is used herein to collectively refer to the passive and/oractive circuits and/or physical structures of a particular cashboxconfigured to communicate information to a cashbox data reader of a dropcart such as described herein. Example cashbox data transmittersinclude, but are not limited to: near field communications radios; nearfield communication tags; radio frequency identification radios; radiofrequency identification tags; physical contacts (e.g., pogo pins, flatcontacts, standardized or proprietary contacts) coupled to an electroniccircuit within a cashbox; Bluetooth communications circuitry; Wi-Ficommunications circuitry; infrared communication circuitry; Ethernetcommunications circuitry; any other wired or wireless communicationcircuitry implementing a standardized or proprietary communicationsprotocol; and so on.

In some examples, the cashbox data readers of a drop cart conductivelycouple to one or more electrodes or data ports of a cashbox datatransmitter. In other examples, the cashbox data readers and cashboxdata transmitters are wireless and contactless. An exampleimplementation of a drop cart includes a compartment with a cashbox datareader including a near field communications radio configured tocommunicably couple to a cashbox data transmitter including a near fieldcommunications radio. It may be appreciated that the relativepositioning of a cashbox data reader—and/or portions thereof, such as anelectrical contact or a wireless antenna—depends upon, among otherthings, the geometry of a particular cashbox and the cashbox datatransmitter of that cashbox. In some cases, a single compartment of adrop cart, such as described herein, includes multiple cashbox datareaders; each disposed in different locations and/or configured totransact data with different cashbox data transmitters. In other words,it is appreciated that a single compartment of a drop cart, such asdescribed herein, can include any number of cashbox data readers thatcan be configured to communicate with any number of cashbox datatransmitters, using the same or different technologies.

As noted above, it may be appreciated that these foregoing examples arenot exhaustive and that any suitable communication technique or dataextraction technology can be used by a cashbox data reader, such asdescribed herein, in order to obtain data from a cashbox datatransmitter of a cashbox inserted into a particular compartment of adrop cart, such as described herein. For example, a cashbox data readercan be configured to support multiple communication protocols and/ormultiple techniques of obtaining data from a cashbox data transmitter;for simplicity of description, the embodiments that follow referencecashbox data readers configured to extract data from a single type ofcashbox using a single communication(s) technology, but it may beappreciated that this is merely one example and that other cashbox datareaders and/or drop carts can be configured in a different manner.

In addition to the cashbox data readers described above, a drop cartsuch as described herein further includes a controller or processorcommunicably coupled to each cashbox data reader, a memory, a powersource (e.g., a battery) and a wireless or wired network communicationsubsystem (e.g., Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Ethernet, infrared, and the like). Asa result of this construction, and as a result of the alignmentencouraged by the geometry and structure of each compartment, cashboxdata can be read immediately (or at any other suitable time) once acashbox is inserted into a compartment of the drop cart.

In another non-limiting phrasing, for embodiments described herein, thedrop cart itself can retrieve, backup, and/or transmit (to one or morecasino accounting systems or another system), cashbox data before thedrop cart arrives at a counting room. It may be appreciated theseembodiments dramatically increase the speed at which data can beextracted from a set, group, or batch of cashboxes and consumed by orotherwise received by a casino accounting system.

Once at least one cashbox ready for processing is inserted into acompartment of a drop cart, such as described herein, the drop cart canbe navigated by a casino employee to a counting room that houses anautonomous drop cart processing system, such as described herein.

An autonomous drop cart processing system can be configured to, withoutsubstantial intervention by a human operator: receive a drop cart oflocked cashboxes; fix and/or otherwise lock the drop cart in place;unlock each locked cashbox on the drop cart while leaving each cashboxon the drop cart; open each unlocked door of each cashbox; retrievedocument stacks from the unlocked cashboxes; process the retrieveddocuments (e.g., by sorting, counting, reconciling, and/or bundling);close each unlocked door of each cashbox; and relock the emptiedcashboxes. Thereafter, the emptied and relocked cashboxes can bere-inserted into an electronic gaming machine by a casino employee. Insome embodiments, the autonomous drop cart processing system can befurther configured to organize the retrieved and/or bundled documentstacks by denomination or in any other suitable manner, for example inpreparation for collection and deposit at a bank. In some cases, theautonomous drop cart processing system can be configured to insertidentification cards or other data processing flags into documentstacks, such as header cards or trailer/footer cards.

To perform these operations, an autonomous drop cart processing system,such as described herein, typically includes one or more articulated,delta, or Cartesian coordinate robots (collectively, “automationmechanisms”) communicably coupled to a controller that can adjust theposition or pose of the robots across one or more degrees of freedom infree space. In many embodiments, one or more components of thecontroller can include, or can be communicably coupled to, circuitryand/or logic components, such as a processor and a memory. The processorof the controller can be implemented as any device capable ofprocessing, receiving, or transmitting data or instructions. Forexample, the processor can be a microprocessor, a central processingunit, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field-programmablegate array, a digital signal processor, an analog circuit, a digitalcircuit, or combination of such devices. The processor may be asingle-thread or multi-thread processor. The processor may be asingle-core or multi-core processor. In some embodiments, the processormay be configured to operate as a programmable logic controller.

Accordingly, as described herein, the term “processing unit” or, moregenerally, “processor” or “controller” refers to a hardware-implementeddata processing device or circuit physically structured to executespecific transformations of data including data operations representedas code and/or instructions included in a program that can be storedwithin and accessed from a memory. The term is meant to encompass asingle processor or processing unit, multiple processors, multipleprocessing units, analog or digital circuits, or other suitablyconfigured computing element or combination of elements.

In one embodiment, an autonomous drop cart processing system includes afirst automation mechanism fitted with a key attachment can manipulatethe position or pose of the key attachment to locate (e.g., via computervision, a fixed location, and so on) and unlock one or more locked doorsof the selected cashbox. In these examples, a controller of the dropcart can communicably couple to the controller of the autonomous dropcart processing system in order to communicate the cashbox informationcommunicated from the cashbox data transmitter of the selected cashboxto the cashbox data reader of the compartment of the drop cart intowhich the selected cashbox is positioned.

In some embodiments, the first automation mechanism is aCartesian-coordinate robot configured to move in plane with an externalsurface of the drop cart, whereas in other cases, the first automationmechanism is a delta robot or an articulated robot. It may beappreciated that any suitable mechanism configured to locate a lock of acashbox, insert a key into the located lock, manipulate the key tounlock the lock, and (optionally) to adjust its own position or pose topivotably manipulate the door of the selected cashbox in order to exposethe contents thereof. In some embodiments, the first automationmechanism can be further configured to re-lock the locking mechanism ofthe door of the selected cashbox, while that door is open, so that thefirst automation mechanism can advance to select and unlock anothercashbox, while leaving the door of the first cashbox open and itscontents accessible to other mechanism(s) of the automated drop carthandling.

Thereafter, in some embodiments, once the content of one or moreselected cashboxes on the drop cart are accessible (e.g., the door tosaid cashbox(es) are opened, whether the lock to those cashbox(es) arelocked or unlocked), another automation mechanism fitted with a graspingattachment (e.g., clamp, finger mechanism, suction mechanism, pincer,and the like) can locate, grip, and withdraw a document stack disposedwithin the unlocked cashbox. In many examples, the gripper can includeone or more features to support stack of documents, preventing the stackfrom drooping or otherwise collapsing when removed from the unlockedcashbox by the second automation mechanism.

Thereafter, the second automation mechanism can place the withdrawnstack of documents into a document sorting mechanism, a joggingmechanism, a document counting mechanism, a document binding or bundlingmechanism, or any other suitable mechanism or compartment. In somecases, the second automation mechanism can be configured to convey thestack of documents from one mechanism to another. For example, thesecond automation mechanism can be configure to withdraw the stack ofdocuments from the unlocked cashbox, position the stack of documents ina hopper of a document counting mechanism, grasp the stack of documentsonce counted by the document counting mechanism, position the countedstack of documents in a hopper of a document sorting mechanism, grasp atleast one sorted stack of counted documents, position the at least onesorted stack of counted documents into hopper of a document bindingmechanism, and so on.

Thereafter, once the unlocked cashbox is emptied of documents by thesecond automation mechanism, the first and second automation mechanismscan be manipulated by the controller to close the open door of thecashbox and relock the cashbox, while the cashbox remains on the dropcart.

Once all cashboxes on the drop cart are processed, and all contenttherefrom is removed, the drop cart itself can be released from anyanchoring mechanism holding the drop cart in place relative to thefirst, second, or any other mechanism of the autonomous drop cartprocessing system, and a notification signal can be sent to a casinoemployee to move the drop cart so that another drop cart can beprocessed and/or to remove the drop cart to reinstall the emptycashboxes into electronic gaming machines on the casino.

In some cases, the autonomous drop cart processing system can include afloor track or other guide configured to receive drop carts forprocessing. The floor track can include one or more anchor points orretaining structures that secure a drop cart in place and/or move a dropcart into place while the various automation mechanisms of theautonomous drop cart processing system process each cashbox on the dropcart. In some cases, the floor track can be configured to move a dropcart at a continuous pace while one or more automation mechanisms of theautonomous drop cart processing system move along with the drop cart. Inthis manner, in a simpler phrasing, an autonomous drop cart processingsystem, such as described herein, can be configured as a continuousprocessing line receiving an input of one or more drop carts with anumber of cashboxes ready for processing and producing an output of oneor more drop carts including only empty cashboxes suitable forreinstallation in electronic gaming machines.

It is appreciated that the foregoing and following examples are notexhaustive of the various possible implementations of embodimentsdescribed herein and equivalents thereof.

These and other embodiments are discussed below with reference to FIGS.1-7. However, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that thedetailed description given herein with respect to these figures is forexplanatory purposes only and should not be construed as limiting.

FIG. 1 depicts a drop cart for use in a casino gaming environment, suchas described herein. As noted with respect to other embodimentsdescribed herein, the drop cart 100 is a movable storage rack, trolley,or other movable compartment, cage, cabinet, or locker used by a casinoemployee to store and securely transport a number of cashboxes collectedfrom a number of electronic gaming machines, to a counting room or othersecure location of a casino. The drop cart 100 is configured to storeand collect information from an array of cash boxes that can be insertedinto compartments of the drop cart 100. In this manner, the drop cart100 is configured to be processed with an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, such as described herein. For simplicity ofillustration, the autonomous drop cart processing system is not shown inFIG. 1.

The drop cart 100 includes a housing frame 102 that supports andencloses the various components and structures of the drop cart 100. Thehousing frame 102 can be made from a number of suitable materialsincluding, but not limited to: metal; fiberglass; plastic; acrylic;wood; and so on. In many cases, the housing frame 102 is made from amaterial that is transparent to radio signals, although this may not berequired of all embodiments.

As illustrated, the housing frame 102 takes the shape of a rectangularprism, one or more sides of which define a number of compartments oralignment regions into which individual cashboxes can be inserted. Forpurposes of illustration, one cashbox is identified as the cashbox 104and is aligned with a compartment identified as the compartment 102 a.The drop cart is movable by wheels or casters that support the frame(one of which is identified as the wheel 102 b), which may be powered orunpowered. As noted above, other drop cart frames or housings can beimplemented with different shapes, including cylindrical or drum shapes,cubic shapes, and the like.

The compartments of the drop cart 100 defined by the housing frame 102can be disposed in any suitable pattern. In the illustrated embodiment,the housing frame 102 defines seven rows of cashbox compartments, eachof which is configured to receive twelve independent cashboxes. In manycases, the drop cart 100 can be configured to receive cashboxes on twosides thereof, thereby defining two discrete arrays of compartmentsconfigured to receive eighty four independent cashboxes; in theillustrated embodiment is may be understood that only a single side ofthe housing frame 102 and drop cart 100 is visible. It is understoodthat a second array of compartments may be defined on the side of thehousing frame 102 opposite the depicted array.

In further embodiments, the housing frame 102 can define another patternof compartments that may include a greater or smaller number of rows orindividual compartments. It is appreciated that the depictedconstruction is merely one example.

The cashbox 104 includes a lockable lid 104 a that encloses an internalvolume 104 b into which a stack of documents 106 can be stored. As notedabove and with respect to other embodiments described herein, the stackof documents 106 can be a stack of banknotes, bills, cash, vouchers,receipts, tax forms, or any other suitable document.

The cashbox 104 can be formed in a number of suitable shapes and sizes.In the illustrated embodiment, a rectangular prims is shown, but is itappreciated that in other embodiments, the cashbox 104 can take othershapes.

Similarly, it is appreciated that the compartment 102 a of the housingframe 102 is sized to receive the cashbox 104. In this manner, the sizeand shape of the compartment 102 a is understood to be complementary tothe size and shape of the cashbox 104.

As noted above with respect to other embodiments described herein, thecashbox 104 also includes electronic components, such as a controller, amemory, and a communications module including a cashbox datatransmitter. For simplicity of illustration these elements are not shownin FIG. 1. The cashbox data transmitter of the cashbox 104 can beconfigured to communicably couple with a cashbox data receiver disposedin the compartment 102 a of the drop cart 100. In this manner, and as aresult of this alignment and construction, data or information stored ina memory of the cashbox 104, such as data corresponding to the stack ofdocuments 106 (e.g., count of documents, total currency value, serialnumbers of each document, and so on) can be communicated to the dropcart 100.

More specifically, as noted above and with respect to other embodimentsdescribed herein, the drop cart 100 can include one or more electroniccomponents configured to perform or coordinate one or more operations ofthe drop cart 100. For example, the drop cart 100 can include a memory,a processor, and an array of cashbox data receivers. The drop cart 100can also include a replenishable power supply, such as a rechargeablebattery, configured to provide electrical power to each of theelectronic and/or electromechanical components of the drop cart 100.

In many embodiments, each of the cashbox data receivers of the array ofcashbox data receivers of the drop cart 100 can be communicably coupledto the processor of the drop cart 100 such that data received from anyone of the cashbox data receivers can be processed by the processor(e.g., formatted, converted, decrypted, and so on) and stored in amemory of the drop cart 100. As noted above, the drop cart 100 can alsoinclude one or more sensors configured to detect insertion of a cashboxinto a particular compartment, such as insertion of the cashbox 105 intothe compartment 102 a. Example sensors include, but are not limited to:pushbutton switches; magnetic reed switches; photo interrupters;capacitive sensors; and so on. In other examples, the drop cart 100 caninclude a human interface device, such as a touch screen or a button,which can be used by a casino employee to provide input to the drop cart100. Such input can include an indication that a cashbox has beeninserted into a compartment of the drop cart 100.

It may be appreciated that the foregoing description of FIG. 1, and thevarious alternatives thereof and variations thereto, are presented,generally, for purposes of explanation, and to facilitate a thoroughunderstanding of the structure and general function of a drop cart, suchas described herein. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in theart that some of the specific details presented herein may not berequired in order to practice a particular described embodiment, or anequivalent thereof.

Thus, it is understood that the foregoing descriptions of specificembodiments are presented for the purposes of illustration anddescription. These descriptions are not exhaustive nor intended to limitthe disclosure to the precise forms recited herein. To the contrary, itwill be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that manymodifications and variations are possible in view of the aboveteachings.

For example, generally and broadly, FIGS. 2A-2B depict the drop cart ofFIG. 1, viewed through lines A-A and B-B respectively. In addition,these figures depict an autonomous drop cart processing system that canbe configured to process each cashbox inserted into the variouscompartments of the drop cart 100 without removing said cashboxes fromthe drop cart.

FIGS. 2A-2B depicts a top and front plan view of the drop cart of FIG. 1viewed from lines A-A and B-B, respectively. In the illustratedembodiment, the drop cart 200 includes the housing frame 202. Similar toFIG. 1, the housing frame 202 defines a number of compartments arrangedas a grid and configured to receive a number of cashboxes. In theillustrated embodiment, two separated arrays of compartments 204 a, 204b are positioned opposite one another along a length of the housingframe 202. As with other embodiments described herein, each compartmentof the arrays of compartments 204 a, 204 b is associated with at leastone respective cashbox data reader, two of which are identified as thecashbox data readers 206 a, 206 b. As with other embodiments describedherein, the cashbox data readers of the drop cart 200 are typicallycommunicably coupled to a controller of the drop cart 200, for examplevia a communication bus 208. As a result of this architecture, whenevera cashbox is inserted into a compartment of the drop cart 200, arespective one cashbox data reader can read data or information from theinserted cashbox. Thereafter, the cashbox data reader can communicatethe received information to the controller (or another circuit) of thedrop cart 200 to be stored in a memory and/or communicated via awireless or wired data channel to another system or network, such as acasino accounting system.

As noted with respect to other embodiments described herein, eachcashbox inserted into the various compartments of the drop cart 200 canbe processed by an autonomous drop cart processing system 210. Morespecifically, the autonomous drop cart processing system 210 isconfigured to extract a stack of documents from each cashbox insertedinto the drop cart 200 while the cashbox is on the drop cart 200. Inthis manner, as described above, the autonomous drop cart processingsystem 210 enables a substantial increase in processing speed of abatch, group, or set of cashboxes.

In particular, in the illustrated embodiment, the autonomous drop cartprocessing system 210 includes a first automation mechanism 212 alsoreferred to as an access control robot.

The first automation mechanism 212 of the autonomous drop cartprocessing system 210 of the illustrated embodiment is implemented as aCartesian-coordinate robot configured to shift a position of a lockingattachment 212 a (also referred to as a key attachment) relative to thearray(s) of compartments of the drop cart 200.

More particularly, the first automation mechanism 212 of the autonomousdrop cart processing system 210 is supported by a vertical frame 212 band is configured to translate in a linear and vertical direction inorder to align the locking attachment 212 a—and in particular a keyextension 212 c coupled to an extending actuation portion of the lockingattachment 212 a—with a keyhole of a selected cashbox inserted into thedrop cart 200. As described with respect to other embodiments describedherein, the first automation mechanism 212 is configured to not onlyunlock a selected cashbox (or, in other embodiments include more thanone locking attachment 212 a and more than one key extension 212 c) butalso to open a door to each cashbox once the door to said cashbox (e.g.,the cashbox 216) is unlocked.

In other embodiments, only a single automation mechanism may berequired. In such implementations, the automation mechanism can beconfigured to access and couple to multiple discrete attachments (e.g.,a locking attachment, a key extension, a grasping mechanism, and so on).

The autonomous drop cart processing system 210 also includes a secondautomation mechanism 214, also referred to as a document processingrobot. In the illustrated embodiment, the second automation mechanism214 of the autonomous drop cart processing system 210 is implemented asan articulated robot include a base 214 a that supports a movablemechanical arm 214 b. The movable mechanical arm 214 b of the autonomousdrop cart processing system 210 is configured to position a graspingattachment 214 c coupled to the movable mechanical arm 214 b in freespace in order to extract a stack of documents from an unlocked cashboxwhose door is open.

As a result of this construction, when the drop cart 200 is navigatedinto position adjacent to the autonomous drop cart processing system210, the drop cart 200 can be anchored in place. After the drop cart 100is anchored in place, the first automation mechanism 212 can manipulateand reposition the key extension 212 c to iteratively unlock and openeach cashbox on the side of the drop cart 200 facing the autonomous dropcart processing system 210.

Once at least one cashbox (e.g., the cashbox 216) inserted into the dropcart 200 is unlocked and opened, the second automation mechanism 214 canmanipulate and reposition the grasping attachment 214 c in order towithdraw a stack of documents from the selected cashbox. Thereafter, thewithdrawn stack of documents can be positioned into a collection station218. The collection station 218 can include one or more of, withoutlimitation: a document jogger; a document sorter; a document counter; adocument banding system; and the like.

Once each cart of a single side of the drop cart 200 has been processed,a notification or signal may be sent to a casino employee to reverse theposition of the drop cart relative to the autonomous drop cartprocessing system 210. In other cases, more than one autonomous dropcart processing system 210 can be included; in these examples, a dropcart—such as the drop cart 200—can be positioned between two autonomousdrop cart processing systems such as described herein.

It may be appreciated that the foregoing description of FIGS. 2A-2B, andthe various alternatives thereof and variations thereto, are presented,generally, for purposes of explanation, and to facilitate a thoroughunderstanding of various possible configurations of a drop cart, such asdescribed herein. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the artthat some of the specific details presented herein may not be requiredin order to practice a particular described embodiment, or an equivalentthereof.

Thus, it is understood that the foregoing descriptions of specificembodiments are presented for the purposes of illustration anddescription. These descriptions are not exhaustive nor intended to limitthe disclosure to the precise forms recited herein. To the contrary, itwill be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that manymodifications and variations are possible in view of the aboveteachings.

FIG. 3 depicts a simplified system diagram of a drop cart including acashbox reader array, such as described herein. In particular, the dropcart 300 includes a processor 302, a memory 304, a network connection306, a power source 308, an optional status display 310, one or moreoptional input devices 312, and a cashbox data reader array 314.

The processor 302 of the drop cart 300 can be any suitable processor orprocessing device and is configured to perform, coordinate, supervise,and/or schedule one or more tasks or operations of the drop cart 300. Inmany examples, the processor 302 is configured to communicably couple tothe memory 304 to access one or more executable program instructions toperform one or more tasks or operations.

For example, the processor 302 may be configured to access the memory304 in order to perform the operation(s) of obtaining and/or processinginformation or data from one or more cashboxes. In particular, theprocessor 302 can be configured to communicably couple to at least onecashbox data reader of the cashbox data reader array 314 to receiveinformation or data corresponding to a cashbox inserted into the dropcart 300. Thereafter, the processor 302 can be configured to process,reformat, consume, and/or otherwise utilize the information receivedfrom the inserted cashbox.

In other cases, the processor 302 can be configured to store all or someof the data received from an inserted cashbox in the memory 304. Inother cases, the processor 302 can be configured to transmit some or allof the data or information received from an inserted cashbox to anothersystem, such as a casino accounting system or an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, such as described herein. In order to communicateinformation to another system and/or to an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, the processor 302 can leverage the network connection306, which can be a wired or wireless connection.

As with other embodiments described herein, the drop cart 300 canreceive electrical power from an internal power source, such as thepower source 308. Example power sources include but are not limited to:battery power sources; solar power sources; capacitive power sources;and the like and so on. The power source 308 can include one or morerecharging circuits. It may be appreciated that these foregoing examplesare not exhaustive of all types of power sources that may be leveragedby a drop cart, such as described herein.

The drop cart 300 can also include an optional status display 310 and/orone or more optional input devices 312 of the drop cart 300. The statusdisplay(s) of the drop cart 300 can be configured to provide a visual,audio, haptic, or other indication to a casino employee in control ofthe drop cart 300 of one or more state changes of the drop cart 300 orof a cashbox inserted into the drop cart 300. For example, a statusdisplay of the drop cart 300 can indicate to a casino employee, withoutlimitation: whether a cashbox is properly seated in a compartment of thedrop cart; whether a cashbox requires emptying; whether a cashbox isempty or full; whether reading data from a cashbox succeeded or failed;a power level of the power source 308; and the like and so on.

It may be appreciated that the foregoing description of FIG. 3, and thevarious alternatives thereof and variations thereto, are presented,generally, for purposes of explanation, and to facilitate a thoroughunderstanding of various possible configurations of control electronicsassociated with a drop cart, such as described herein. However, it willbe apparent to one skilled in the art that some of the specific detailspresented herein may not be required in order to practice a particulardescribed embodiment, or an equivalent thereof.

Thus, it is understood that the foregoing descriptions of specificembodiments are presented for the purposes of illustration anddescription. These descriptions are not exhaustive nor intended to limitthe disclosure to the precise forms recited herein. To the contrary, itwill be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that manymodifications and variations are possible in view of the aboveteachings.

FIG. 4 depicts a simplified system diagram of an autonomous drop cartprocessing system, such as described herein. The autonomous drop cartprocessing system 400 includes a processor 402 (also referred to as acontroller), a memory 404, a network connection 406, a power source 408,an optional status display 410, an optional input device 412, and twoautomation mechanisms identified as the document processing robot 414(also referred to as a robot arm), and an access control robot 416 (alsoreferred to as a linear robot).

As with other embodiments described herein, it may be appreciated thatthe processor 402, the memory 404, the network connection 406, the powersource 408, the status display 410, and the input device 412 can beconfigured and implemented in a similar manner as describe above withrespect to FIG. 3 and other embodiments; this description is notrepeated. In addition, the first and second automation mechanismsidentified as the document processing robot 414 (also referred to as arobot arm) and the access control robot 416 (also referred to as alinear robot) can be configured in the same manner as described aboveand with respect to other embodiments, this description is not repeated.

It may be appreciated that the foregoing description of FIG. 4, and thevarious alternatives thereof and variations thereto, are presented,generally, for purposes of explanation, and to facilitate a thoroughunderstanding of various possible configurations of control electronicsassociated with an autonomous drop cart processing system, such asdescribed herein. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the artthat some of the specific details presented herein may not be requiredin order to practice a particular described embodiment, or an equivalentthereof.

Thus, it is understood that the foregoing descriptions of specificembodiments are presented for the purposes of illustration anddescription. These descriptions are not exhaustive nor intended to limitthe disclosure to the precise forms recited herein. To the contrary, itwill be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that manymodifications and variations are possible in view of the aboveteachings.

Generally and broadly, FIGS. 5-7 depict example operations of methods ofoperating an autonomous drop cart processing system, such as describedherein.

For example, FIG. 5 depicts example operations of a method of operatinga drop cart, such as described herein. These operations can beperformed, in whole or in part, by a processor or other controller of adrop cart, such as described herein (see, e.g., FIGS. 1-3). In somecases, one or more operations of the method 500 can be carried out, inwhole or in part, in software executed by a processor or controller of adrop cart, such as described herein.

The method 500 includes operation 502 in which a drop cart processor,circuit, or other electronic component detects insertion of a cashboxinto an empty slot or compartment of the drop cart. The detectionperformed at operation 502 can be performed in a number of suitable wayswith any suitable electronic hardware. For example, in some examples,the drop cart includes an electronic switch that can be actuated byinsertion of a cash box. In other cases, the drop cart can include anoptical break detection system include a photodetector and aphotoemitter. In these examples, when the optical path between thephotodetector and the photoemitter is interrupted, the drop cart candetermine that a cashbox has been inserted.

In still further examples, the drop cart can include one or more inputcomponents such as buttons or a touch-sensitive screen. A casinoemployee can operate one of these input components to inform thecontroller of the drop cart that a cashbox has been inserted. Theforegoing examples are not exhaustive and it may be appreciated that anysuitable means of detecting or indicating insertion of a cashbox into acompartment of a drop cart, such as described herein, can be used.

The method 500 also includes operation 504 in which a controller of thedrop cart operates a cashbox data reader to read data from the cashboxthat was inserted into the drop cart. As noted with respect to otherembodiments described herein, the cashbox data reader can leverage anysuitable technology to read data from the cashbox. In some cases, thedrop cart and/or the cashbox data reader can select a particulartechnology among a set of available technologies in order to read aparticular cashbox. For example, a drop cart may be configured to readdata from three types of cashboxes. In these examples, the controller ofthe drop cart may be configured to iteratively test each of a set ofthree different cashbox data reader technologies (e.g., differentphysical hardware, different communication protocols and so on) untildata is obtained from the cashbox inserted into the drop cart atoperation 502.

In some cases, a drop cart and/or a cashbox data reader may not be ableto obtain data from the cashbox inserted at operation 502. In theseexamples, the drop cart may be configured to alert a casino employeeand/or send a signal to a casino system (e.g., accounting system) notingthat the drop cart is unable to obtain data from the inserted cashbox.In response, a casino employee may be directed to attempt to reinsertand/or otherwise reseat the cashbox in the drop cart, may mark thecashbox for manual processing, and the like. In some cases, the dropcart may include one or more status lights or indicators to indicatewhether data has been successfully obtained from the cashbox inserted atoperation 502.

The method 500 also includes operation 506 in which data obtained fromthe cashbox inserted at operation 502 is transmitted or otherwiseprovided as input to a casino accounting system. The operation 506 canbe performed in whole or in part across a wired communication interface(e.g., Ethernet), a wireless communication interface (e.g., Wi-Fi orBluetooth), or using any other suitable technique. In some cases, theoperation 506 may be buffered or otherwise performed at a later time,such as when the drop cart is delivered by a casino employee to acounting room. It is appreciated that the operation 506 can take placeat any suitable time and may be performed in response to an instructionfrom an autonomous drop cart processing system, such as describedherein, in response to an instruction from a casino employee, and/or inresponse to an instruction received from a casino accounting system.

FIG. 6 depicts example operations of a method of operating an autonomousdrop cart processing system, such as described herein. These operationscan be performed, in whole or in part, by a processor or othercontroller of an autonomous drop cart processing system, such asdescribed herein (see, e.g., FIGS. 2A-4). In some cases, one or moreoperations of the method 600 can be carried out, in whole or in part, insoftware executed by a processor or controller of an autonomous dropcart processing system, such as described herein.

The method 600 includes operation 602 in which a cashbox stored on adrop cart being processed by the autonomous drop cart processing systemis selected. In some cases, an entire row of cashboxes can be selected.

Next, at operation 604, an access control robot can be positioned by acontroller of the autonomous drop cart processing system based on aknown position and/or location the selected cashbox or row. In someexamples, such as described above, the access control robot can be aCartesian coordinate robot configured to position a key attachmentwithin a lock of the selected cashbox (or, alternatively, a set of keyattachments, each fitted into a respective one cashbox of a row or othergrouping of cashboxes).

Next, at operation 606, the access control robot can be instructed tounlock one or more of the cashboxes selected at operation 602. Theaccess control robot can be further configured to open an unlocked doorof each of the cashboxes selected at operation 602.

Next at operation 608, a document processing robot can be positioned bya controller of the autonomous drop cart processing system based on aknown position and/or location the selected cashbox or row. In someexamples, such as described above, the document processing robot can bean articulated joint robot or a delta robot configured to position agrasping attachment within a cavity of each of the cashboxes unlocked atoperation 606.

Next, at operation 610, the document processing robot can be positionedby a controller of the autonomous drop cart processing system to extracta stack of documents from the cavity of each of the cashboxes unlockedat operation 606.

Finally, at operation 612, the access control robot can be repositionedby a controller of the autonomous drop cart processing system based on aknown position and/or location the selected cashbox or row. Thereafter,the access control robot can be used to close the door(s) of eachselected cashbox and to lock the doors of each selected cashbox.

The method 600 can, in some examples, thereafter advance back tooperation 602 in which another cashbox or another row of cashboxes canbe selected. Thereafter, the various operations of method 600 describedabove can be performed again.

FIG. 7 depicts example operations of a method of operating an autonomousdrop cart processing system, such as described herein. As with othermethod embodiments described herein, the method 700 can be performed inwhole or in part by a controller of an autonomous drop cart processingsystem.

The method 700 includes operation 702 in which a set of documentsextracted (e.g., by a document processing robot) can be placed in adocument jogger. Optionally, at operation 704, one or moreidentification or placement cards can be inserted into the documentstack, onto the document stack, or below the document stack, such as aheader card or a trailer card. Thereafter, at operation 706, thedocument jogger can be activated. Once the documents in the documentstack are jogged, the jogged stack of documents can be appropriatelymoved to any other suitable system, such as but not limited to: acurrency counter; a currency bundler or binder; a document sorter; andthe like.

The foregoing embodiments depicted in the figures referenced above andthe various alternatives thereof and variations thereto are presented,generally, for purposes of explanation, and to facilitate anunderstanding of various configurations and constructions of a networkarchitecture that facilitates communication by and between variouscomponents of an autonomous drop cart processing system, such asdescribed herein. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the artthat some of the specific details presented herein may not be requiredin order to practice a particular described embodiment, or an equivalentthereof.

Thus, it is understood that the foregoing descriptions of specificembodiments are presented for the limited purposes of illustration anddescription. These descriptions are not targeted to be exhaustive or tolimit the disclosure to the precise forms recited herein. To thecontrary, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art thatmany modifications and variations are possible in view of the aboveteachings.

One may appreciate that although many embodiments are disclosed above,that the operations and steps presented with respect to methods andtechniques described herein are meant as exemplary and accordingly arenot exhaustive. One may further appreciate that alternate step order orfewer or additional operations may be required or desired for particularembodiments.

Although the disclosure above is described in terms of various exemplaryembodiments and implementations, it should be understood that thevarious features, aspects and functionality described in one or more ofthe individual embodiments are not limited in their applicability to theparticular embodiment with which they are described, but instead can beapplied, alone or in various combinations, to one or more of the someembodiments of the invention, whether or not such embodiments aredescribed and whether or not such features are presented as being a partof a described embodiment. Thus, the breadth and scope of the presentinvention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplaryembodiments but is instead defined by the claims herein presented.

In addition, it is understood that organizations and/or entitiesresponsible for the access, aggregation, validation, analysis,disclosure, transfer, storage, or other use of private data such asdescribed herein—including private financial data—will preferably complywith published and industry-established privacy, data, and networksecurity policies and practices. For example, it is understood that dataand/or information obtained from remote or local data sources—only oninformed consent of the subject of that data and/or information—shouldbe accessed aggregated only for legitimate, agreed-upon, and reasonableuses.

What is claimed is:
 1. A drop cart for automated casino accounting,comprising: a housing frame that defines a compartment; a cashbox datareceiver configured to communicably couple with a cashbox data receiverof an electronic gaming machine cashbox positioned in the compartment;and a processor configured to: obtain data, from a storage medium of theelectronic gaming machine cashbox via the cashbox data receiver,corresponding to a stack of documents contained by the electronic gamingmachine cashbox; and instruct the electronic gaming machine cashbox toclear the data from the storage medium.
 2. The drop cart of claim 1,wherein the processor is configured to instruct the electronic gamingmachine cashbox to clear the data from the storage medium after thestack of documents is removed from the electronic gaming machinecashbox.
 3. The drop cart of claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured to obtain the data upon insertion of the electronic gamingmachine cashbox into the compartment.
 4. The drop cart of claim 1,wherein the processor is configured to provide an alert that theprocessor is unable to obtain the data.
 5. The drop cart of claim 1,wherein the processor is configured to provide an alert that the stackof documents was not removed from the electronic gaming machine cashbox.6. A drop cart for automated casino accounting, comprising: a housingframe that defines a compartment; a cashbox data receiver configured tocommunicably couple with a cashbox data receiver of an electronic gamingmachine cashbox positioned in the compartment; a communicationcomponent; and a processor configured to: obtain data, from the cashboxdata receiver, corresponding to a stack of documents contained by theelectronic gaming machine cashbox; and provide the data to an electronicdevice via the communication component.
 7. The drop cart of claim 6,wherein the processor is configured to provide the data upon insertionof the electronic gaming machine cashbox into the compartment.
 8. Thedrop cart of claim 6, wherein the processor is configured to provide thedata while the drop cart is in motion.
 9. The drop cart of claim 6,wherein the processor provides the data to a casino accounting system.10. The drop cart of claim 6, wherein the processor provides the data toan autonomous drop cart processing system.
 11. A drop cart for automatedcasino accounting, comprising: a housing frame that defines acompartment; a cashbox data receiver configured to communicably couplewith a cashbox data receiver of an electronic gaming machine cashboxpositioned in the compartment in order to obtain data corresponding to astack of documents contained by the electronic gaming machine cashbox;and a movement mechanism that allows movement of the housing frame. 12.The drop cart of claim 11, wherein the movement mechanism is powered.13. The drop cart of claim 11, wherein the movement mechanism isconfigured to be used by a human operator.
 14. The drop cart of claim11, wherein the movement mechanism includes a wheel.
 15. The drop cartof claim 11, wherein the movement mechanism includes a caster.
 16. Adrop cart for automated casino accounting, comprising: a housing frame;a locking mechanism operable to secure an electronic gaming machinecashbox to the housing frame; and a cashbox data receiver configured tocommunicably couple with a cashbox data receiver of the electronicgaming machine cashbox in order to obtain data corresponding to a stackof documents contained by the electronic gaming machine cashbox.
 17. Thedrop cart of claim 16, wherein the locking mechanism comprises anelectromechanical locking mechanism.
 18. The drop cart of claim 16,further comprising a power source wherein the locking mechanism isoperable while the power source is disconnected.
 19. The drop cart ofclaim 16, further comprising a processor operable to determine an errorcondition regarding the electronic gaming machine cashbox.
 20. The dropcart of claim 16, wherein the locking mechanism comprises at least oneof: a push-push mechanism; a latch mechanism; or a detent mechanism.